I have some snowboard-wear (gore-tex) that I want to clean. Anyone know of any places where I can do chemical cleaning of these - in Zurich/Zug area ?
Hi,
Be careful. A hand-wash, even a machine wash is likely to be better than dry-cleaning.
At a ski (or outdoors) shop you should find products to wash waterproofs, and to re-waterproof. We did it in the washing machine.
This is what we used. https://www.nikwax.com/en-gb/product…ing/tech-wash/
Well, I did it in the washing machine last year. And it destroyed the clothes. I mean - they got clean, for sure - but - beside each stiching, a lot of small creases appeared - that make the clothes look used and old. This is what I wanted to avoid this time. I washed mine in low temperature ... So I wanted to try something different.
I spot clean as much as possible. Those Gore-Tex linings have a limited lifespan and cleaning will, in general, only make is shorter. The wrinkling is probably due to the other materials in the garment which then determine which washing method is best. And air dry rather than using the tumbler.
The stitching thread in waterproof garments is normally polycotton - polyester for strength and cotton for waterproofing (it swells when wet, blocking up the stitching holes).
If the wrinkling is only near the stitching then perhaps, somehow, the cotton shrunk but this normally only happens at high temperatures.
The other thing that can cause wrinkling is if the laminate outer, or inner layers shrinks relative to the Goretex layer.
You can dry clean Goretex but as with water washing, you'll need to reproof afterwards and the best way is with wash-in products (but then you get it wet which is what you are trying to prevent.
AFAIK, Goretex is hardly affected by dry cleaning fluids or water (chemically they are similar to non-stick pans), but the physical aspects of washing do them harm. The thin Goretex membranes lose their physical integrity over time - water gets in through the gaps. When you use a "reproofer", this primarily goes into the other layers in the garment and they are generally no longer "breathable", that is letting water vapor through but stopping droplets of water.
My Goretex products get wet over time anyway, with or without washing - from rain on the outside and sweat on the inside.
Careful handwashing isn’t going to do any more harm than wearing them in conditions for which they were designed.
To the OP: If your clothing has lost that water repellency and you want to wash them yourself - I use Nikwax Tech. Wash for washing and TX.Direct Wash-In to restore the water repellency.
I’d ask the clothing manufacturer about the existing wrinkling.